I have been a member of the local Vancouver chapter of Advocis since 2006 when I became life licensed in BC. In the past, I was a passive member, attending Advocis events occasionally and upgrading my credentials through Advocis supported industry designation courses. As I developed my career in the industry, starting as an Employee Benefits Specialist, then on to Account Manager, and then as Life Marketing Manager, I became very focused on servicing my clients, achieving sales and doing my job well.

I found that over the years, Advocis was becoming much more instrumental in my career development, providing advanced tax-planning seminars, networking opportunities and industry updates. For the last five years, I’ve been a Business Development Manager, starting an insurance agency within Doctors of BC, a physician member organization. Recently, I felt I had reached a level in my career that allowed me the knowledge, experience and time to give back to the insurance community.  I wanted to connect with my industry peers. I wanted to mentor others in the industry. I wanted to participate in the growth and reputation of the industry.  I reached out to some of my peers to investigate possible volunteer opportunities and Cory Murphy (current Advocis Vancouver President) invited me to join the Advocis board as the Chair of Professional Conduct, a role that fit my volunteer criteria well.

I’m responsible for addressing complaints against an Advocis Vancouver member; my goal is to ensure the error is corrected, the member is re-educated (disciplined if necessary) and the client and public’s trust is rebuilt. This role is important in upholding the professional integrity of our members and our industry.  I’ve had the pleasure of attending my first board meeting and learning about the exciting new strategies Advocis Vancouver is venturing upon for 2016. I encourage you, the member, to contact me at [email protected] if you have any questions about my role or have ideas that you’d like to share.